Machine Automates Assembly Of Small Molecules

March 12, 2015 6:35 PM

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A new automated machine can synthesize a range of small organic molecules with the push of a button. The synthesizer uses a chemical method that pieces together molecules from modular building blocks. With this technique, the machine synthesized 14 classes of molecules, including some complicated ones with multiple rings.

Organic chemist Martin D. Burke of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and coworkers developed the synthetic method and the new machine (Science 2015, DOI: 10.1126/science.aaa5414). The biotech company Revolution Medicines, based in Redwood City, Calif., cofounded by Burke and the venture ...